In Vino

05/15/09

My favorite Italian restaurant in the East Village

by kwei813 at Citysearch

The waiters are all really knowledgeable and friendly. It's a little cozy so you may have to grab a glass of wine while you wait. The food is delicious! We haven't had anything we've disliked yet. We took some friends there from out of town and they had a great time! It's become our go-to for Italian by our apartment and for taking friends from out of town b/c we know know we will be guaranteed good food, good wine and good service.

• Pros: Good food, wine, service, and ambiance

02/25/09

Not impressed

by pppatel at Citysearch

The food is eeHh......service is non existant....wait stuff is rude......it's not worth the price at all. Plenty of better places in this area. Do not waste your money and time!

• Cons: wait staff

01/05/09

amazing service, wine and food

by butterflysphere at Citysearch

We had a late staff holiday party here last Sunday. Zach took good care of us from the start. He suggested delicious wines to go with our entrees and pampered us with the most amazing service. I was the only vegetarian in the group, but the gnocchi bianco was the best I have ever had. Everyone else seemed to love their steaks and lamb as well. The tiramisu and creme brulee were also too good for words. This was a company party, but we all agreed individually that we would definitely be back!

11/14/08

we hada a good time at Vino

by cchhannddrraa at Citysearch

I came here with three friends. We were advised to order 2-3 plates per person, so we chose to order several plates and all the sides offered that night.

We came a little before the dinner crowd started to arrive, and it was a Sunday evening, which probably played a factor.

Service was fine. We had plenty of attention during our time there and there no glitches otherwise.

Food? Based on the way our wait staff explained our options, and on the way the food looked and tasted when it came out, I had a feeling that the menu here hasn't really changed in a long time and that people are making this food with their eyes closed.

Overall, we had a good time, and the food was tasty.

11/03/08

Great Wine

by alexcxx at Citysearch

walked in at lunch and asked for a wine to be decanted ahead for dinner. arrived at dinner and wine was the right temperature, perfectly decanted, waiting for us. great service, great food, great location, could not ask for much more. the special risotto was a highlight.

• Pros: wines,food,service

10/05/08

Excellent food, wine selection and service!

by vranka at Citysearch

Eight of us went to In Vino for a birthday celebration last week and were delighted by the quality of the food and the service at a very decent price. Having been there several years ago for the wine selection I was a bit uncertain about what to expect from the food but thought the laidback environment would suit our purposes.

Indeed, while the food menu is not extensive, everything was excellent. I had the skirt steak which was perfectly cooked and my friends loved the special risotto. The pasta was less impressive but still good.

The wine selection (Italian only) is deep and the prices reasonable (despite the occasional triple digit bottle, most of the bottles were in the $40 range). Unfortunately, 2 of the wines we asked for were unavailable (the suave had been consumed the night before by a large group and not restocked yet) but our waiter Zach was great in recommending alternatives. Overall, everyone on the staff was super nice and made us feel very welcome-no stuck-up pretenciousness so often found at NY restaurants.

We had brought cake from outside (for which the restaurant charges a small fee) so we did not try the desserts. Overall, great experience, highly recommended if you are looking for quality food, good wine selection, relaxed ambiance and reasonable prices.

• Pros: Great food selection, wine list, service and value
• Cons: Some of the wines were unavailable

07/28/08

Great ambiance and wine selection

by spuffylover24 at Citysearch

I took my fiance here on Friday and we had a lovely date night. The wine selection is amazing, offering some nice variety in the regions available and pricing. The food was exceptionally prepared and delicious. We started the evening with a meat antipasto which was a nice generous serving. He had the skirt steak and I had the lamb chops. Both were seasoned and cooked perfectly. His creme Brule was exceptional, and I had a lovely cheese plate from the very nice selections they offer. My only complaint is that our server was not very attentive, though the table of single ladies across from us seemed to be get loads of attention. The ambiance is beautiful and the place is definitely worth a try.

• Pros: great ambiance, wonderful food, fantastic wine list, well informed staff
• Cons: Not the most attentive service

01/30/08

The right place for great Italian wine and food

by mainhattan at Citysearch

Arriving early definitely pays here, the small place packs out quickly after 7.30. Once you sit, unpretentious, but very courteous and knowledgeable wait staff will take very good care of you, make great wine recommendations (and let you try a few if you are not sure!). The courses come at a casual pace, food is great (pasta starter, steak and lamb were all great). It seems that a key employment prerequisite is love for food and wine, and that definitely helps to make this place a winner.

• Pros: High quality, very nice atmosphere, nice staff
• Cons: --

11/26/07

Ownership change seems to work

by marcuset at Citysearch

Had dinner on a Sat eve a week ago, group of 10, waited for about 40 minutes to be seated. The receptionist girl was nice although a bit insecure like not on the job for too long. The restaurant recently changed owners. If previous reviews are anything to go by, they also must have changed the entire staff and the chefs because the food was awesome and authentic and the service was great as well. The wines were fantastic and very competitively priced. Great place.

• Pros: Wines, food, service
• Cons: Small place so tends to be cramped

03/24/07

Disappointing

by ronh at Citysearch

It all started well with fine bread and a nice bitter olive oil. The waiter was friendly and attentive but I wouldn't have known that there were specials if I hadn't asked him. The lamb chops I ordered were nicely done, but overly salty (and I like salt!) and the wine sauce too strong . I think they actually salted the chops after cooking since the sauce wasn't as salty as the chops themselves. (Is there a kosher salt craze at the moment? Same problem at Gustation). The oven-roasted potatoes were luke-warm (even after I sent them back for reheating) and tired tasting. The spinach with garlic was passable.

Maybe the pastas are what one needs to order?

• Pros: Pleasant vibe
• Cons: At least one bad main course